Full disclosure: a bunch of my illustrations appear in this book, but I have no financial connection to it.

Our very own Dan Dornseif (Southwest 737 captain extraordinaire) has just published his MASTERWORK new book on the history of the 737!

To say I'm impressed would be a gross understatement. Dan used John Wegg's spectacular Caravelle book as a template, and he has succeeded beyond description. If you only have one book on the iconic 737, this is the one to have. Hard bound (with a dust jacket) at 288 pages, the book is literally chock full of fascinating historical, technical, and operational information. The photos (most in color) illustrate every inch of the airplane, as well as many of the thousands of customers who have flown them in the past 50 years. There are lots of reproductions of advertising, both from Boeing and from the airlines, that is 737 related. Separate sections cover the original -100/200, the "Classics", the NGs, and the MAX versions. Unlike any other airliner book I've ever seen, Dan includes a very detailed modeling section at the end, with some of his superb builds illustrating it (all in color).

The production values are great. I had no idea Schiffer was capable of putting out this kind of quality. It's printed in China on heavyweight eggshell finish paper, perfect bound (very high quality), with a hard cover and dust jacket.

You NEED this book!

Thanks for all the effort it took to put this together Dan - it's a home run just like the real airplane!

Quotepinky coffeeboat :
Sounds pretty good I'll definitely get a copy, is 288 pages enough to cover its long history?

Not remotely. 2,880 pages wouldn't be enough, but authors and publishers have to make choices And if Dan were to write *the* history of the 737, he'd need to live to be about 175 years old and it wouldn't be published for another 100 years.

As Pinky Coffeeboat mentioned, the biggest challenge for me was fitting the long history of the 737 into 288 pages. Originally, I estimated that it would be about 160 pages, so Schiffer had to be flexible with me, especially when I dropped the gauntlet that it needed to be in full color. As I met and interviewed 737 historians, designers, aero engineers, marketing managers, and test pilots, the amount of information grew significantly. The project began to take on a new life and became as much about people, as the airplane itself. It was an incredible life experience for me!

I got my copy two days ago and when I got home
I was very surprise to find such a wonderful book.
I simply could not put it away!
Well balance between text and pictures, you just can help to keep reading and flipping pages.
Lots of pictures that I have not seen before and lots of diagrams from J that I had.
Congratulations Dan, I love the book and the price is just right!

Brother Dan had an RON here in scenic KTUS last night, so I went and picked him up at the luxury palace where WN puts its crews up (the Hyatt airport...) and had a great breakfast, followed by a quick side trip up to Casa de Pooches for a peek at the new hobby room in progress. Great to put a face with the name at long last!

At last!! My book arrived today and from a very quick flick through it, it's certainly a book I'll enjoy reading and referring to many times. It contains lots of great pictures and information and the familiar art work of Jennings.

Got my copy today! all I can say is awesome! Jennings has some amazing drawings in there and the modeling section is just an added bonus! Highly recommended!! I Also just received the book called The Story of the MD-11 which is also an amazing book with photos and personal histories of each Aircraft manufactured! A must have for any McDonnell Douglas fan.

Based on Jenning's and others recommendations I ordered a copy. WOW!!! What a great book...

This book definitely will not be a quick couple of days read....More like months and months worth of material to read and digest.

I do like the model section at the end as well.....Not a definitive write up though as the Aurora, Matchbox, Airfix, Nitto, and Welsh kits aren't mentioned. Not meant as a criticism, just that no matter what is written about 737's real or models that it is just a beginning.

Also not a comment on the book but Amazon "dropped the ball" in packing/shipping my copy and sent it loose without any padding in the box. The dust cover ended up with two small tears from bouncing around. Their return policy was pretty seamless where I was able to email them, get free shipping to return, and get a new copy sent in a few days. Disappointing that a company can ship something with poor/no packaging. I share my story in case something similar happens to others. Easy to get a "perfect" copy.

Thank you for all of your support...it means a great deal to me! I am very glad that folks are enjoying the book, too. The 737 is a great airplane with a very interesting history. I thoroughly enjoyed the research for the project and have become bitten by the writing bug in the process. I think another book will eventually follow...

I'm a little late to the party, but my copy of Dan's book just arrived and I spent a good half-hour leafing through it, feeling like a kid on Christmas morning all the while, finding a wonderful new surprise on just about every page. Not only is this a comprehensive and fascinating reference book about a versatile machine (and not only does Jennings contribute some really nifty artwork), but in his way Dan has written a much-needed love letter to an aircraft we too often take for granted. The price may be a trifle dear, but it's worth every cent, and you will not be disappointed.

Thanks Jodie! That means a lot to me and I am glad that you are enjoying the book. I really found the history of the 737 fascinating, and I was fortunate to have Jenning's artistic contributions to include!